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India win; only on paper

Hi All,

Sunday's clash between India and South Africa went right down to the wire and till the last ball it was still anybody's game. Even after the last ball was bowled, spectators had to wait with bated breath for the verdict from the third umpire. Apart from the nail biting excitement the match brought to me, I felt something else which I thought I should pen down and share with everyone.

A drawn result would have been more comfortable with me, for the kind of character that the South African lower order showed and for the not so extraordinary performance displayed by India. Before I get branded as a traitor, let's get something clear here. South African top order, sans Jacques Kallis, did collapse and probably deserved to lose. But help came from unexpected quarters and how. From about 180/7, the lower order ensured that the match went down right to the last ball.

The temperament shown by the SA batsmen especially Wayne Parnell is applaud able and worthy of a lesson for any lower order batsmen. The way he stood up to the challenge and nudged his team almost to the finish line will probably live in our memory for some time to come and serves as a constant reminder to the unpredictability of the cricket. Indian batsmen could take a leaf or two form Parnell's books.

P.S. Yesterday's MOM Ravindra Jadeja was also the same man who lost the match for us against Australia last year when India were chasing a huge total and Sachin made 175 and almost single handedly won the match for India.

Comments

BK Chowla, said…
A win is a win is a win.

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